Have Some Class: Sustainability is sexy

UW students use sex to sell green idea 4

Sustainability is sexy"The UW is bringing sexy back," the Seattle P-I story begins. Well, you've piqued my interest.

The story goes on to describe the Young Democrats' "Sustainability Is Sexy" campaign to get students to bring their own coffee cups to campus.

It even includes a quote from Grist's own Kendra Howe on the value of using "sex" to promote anything from beer to nonprofit causes: "Sex sells no matter what you're selling," she says. I'll drink to that.

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  1. Ron Steenblik Posted 3:28 pm
    01 Mar 2007

    Er, any ideas ...... on how to make a program to achieve greater transparency in subsidies, and the reform of subsidies that undermine sustainability, more "sexy"?
    Sometimes people speak of eliminating perverse subsidies, but the multiple meanings of "perverse" could evoke associations with sex that are not always helpful to the message.
  2. caniscandida Posted 6:26 pm
    01 Mar 2007

    "two good S words"Unfortunately, S words are not nice to people who are self-conscious about their lisp or their stutter ...
    Another great S word, of course, is Seattle; and for a long time now I have been thinking that the most exciting thing that could happen to you in Seattle is if BioD comes chugging up next to you on his New-Age bike-mobile and asks to take your picture.
    Woof-o-rama!
    But now, this take-your-mug-to-school thing opens up all kinds of possibilities.
    For starters, forget about that nonsense about mugs taking up space in your backpack.  As Malcolm says in "Jurassic Park," "Nature finds a way."
    E.g., leave your school books at home -- as if they ever meant anything to anyone! -- , and carry, say, a half dozen mugs, which you have had printed (yes, that might cost you a few Dead Emancipators, but surely you will get value back, and more) with a photo of you in a bathing suit, looking very fit and sleek, hair perfect, tits strong and erect, perhaps a bit artificially enhanced; the abs, OK, as they are, if they are good, otherwise, don't worry, they can be painted in, there is software nowadays that works wonders with abs; a smoldering smile perhaps.
    As for the bathing suit: well, perhaps you could do a couple of modelings, one that is more thongish, or Speedo-ish, and one that is a bit less obvious.  But not too much so.  The folds of even a long-legged trunkish thing can be so manipulated in the camera's eye, that it is hard (so to speak) not to imagine all kinds of excitement awaiting.
    Act 2: Look around at the coffee shops, laser in on the cute ones, and notice if they are drinking out of paper cups (chances are, they are).  Then, at a conveniently unscripted-seeming moment, sidle up to the Alpha Zebra/Zebress in question, produce one of your mugs, and explain why cutey-pie A-Z would be much much happier toting your mug, with your otherwise suggestive image imprinted upon it, than continuing to put his/her desirable lips on that eco-unfriendly waxed paper cup.  Press the mug into his/her hooves, insist that he/she take it, but do not be (at first) overly boringly moralizing.
    Act 3: Then what?!  Did you deliver enough contact info?  Were the e-mail and MySpace references printed on the mug?  All that is up to you.  The world's most romantic messages are scrawled, tequila-smurched phone numbers on napkins: hopefully, they are not too terribly eco-unfriendly.

    Chickens are our cousins!

    So are other sensitive animals!

    Enough is enough!

    No more factory farms!
  3. caniscandida Posted 6:36 pm
    01 Mar 2007

    And oh, Act 4As for Act 4, I assume your Mamma taught you what to do: Go for the mouth.  You can never go wrong with attempted suffocation.
    And a bit of nipple action is always in order.
    But really, the style is up to you at this point.
    Be an artist.

    Chickens are our cousins!

    So are other sensitive animals!

    Enough is enough!

    No more factory farms!
  4. lorayoh Posted 1:01 am
    16 Mar 2007

    sex sellsYou may argue or not but sex remains the easiest pledge to attract attention of uninterested people. Like media plays a great role in promoting certain behavior.

    Still the heading can be less in-your-face silly. But as far as I understood the purpose of the campaign is to "bring their own coffee mugs from home, instead of using the paper cups on campus".

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